George Alagiah is to take a break from 'BBC News at Six' presenting duties after a "further spread of cancer".
George Alagiah
The 65-year-old newsreader was diagnosed with bowel cancer in April 2014 and again in December 2017, and while he returned to the studio in August last year, George is stepping back after a new tumour was found.
His agent said in a statement: "George Alagiah, presenter of 'BBC News At Six', Britain’s most watched news programme, is to take a break from studio duties to deal with a further spread of cancer.
"He was first diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer in April 2014.
"In a letter to colleagues in the newsroom Mr Alagiah said his medical team had decided to hit the new tumour ‘hard and fast’.
"He is due to undergo a combination of chemotherapy and radiotherapy over the next few months."
George is determined to return to the show.
The statement continued: "He added that working on the programme ‘has kept me sane over the last few years’ and ‘I’m determined to come back’."
In June 2020, George revealed his cancer had spread to his lungs.
He explained: "I’ve always said to my oncologist, ‘Tell me when I need to sort my affairs out’, and he’s not told me that, but what he did tell me is that the cancer is now in a third organ. It is in my lungs.
"I said to my doctor, ‘You’re going to have to do the worrying for me.’ I don’t want to fill my mind with worry. I just know that he’s a clever guy, doing everything he can."
In March 2020, the journalist was diagnosed with coronavirus.
He said at the time: "If I can live with cancer, I can certainly live with COVID-19.
"I don't want to trivialise because I seem to have had a mild dose, but actually, the very fact that we are living with cancer I think gives us an edge.
"We've confronted those difficult, dark moments in our life. And in some ways, I think that we, those of us living with cancer, are stronger because we kind of know what it is like to go into something where the outcomes are uncertain.
"And I certainly feel that having had that experience, in my case six years as a cancer patient, I went into this feeling actually quite strong."